THE COCK OF THE WOODS. 401 



Gallinace^ Proper 



Comprehend six families : the TetraonidcB, the PerdicidcB, the 

 Tinam.id(B, the Chionidm, the Megapodidce, and the Phasia- 

 nidce. 



Tetraonid^. 



The birds which compose this group are characterised as 

 follows : — Tarsi completely feathered ; a naked and knotty band of 

 skin siippljang the place of eyebrows ; the body bulky ; and the 

 wings short. This family comprehends several species. The best 

 known we enumerate : — The Cock of the Woods ( Tfe^ra^ urogalhis), 

 the Black Grouse {Tetrao tetrix), Cock of the Plains {Tetrao 

 artimesid), the Pinnated Grouse {Tetrao Cupido), the Ruffed 

 Grouse {Tetrao umbellus), the Hazel Hen, or Gelinotte {Bonasia 

 europtEa), and the Ptarmigan (Lagopus). 



The Cock of the Woods, or Capercailzie {Tetrao urogallus), 

 inhabits the pine and birch forests of northern hilly countries. 

 They feed indifferently upon fruits, berries, the buds of fir and 

 birch trees, insects and grubs — nothing, in fact, comes amiss to 

 satisfy their appetites. Their bearing, which is proud and war- 

 like, is supported by a robust form. Their pliunage is black, 

 spotted with white, and clouded, as it were, with bluish diaphanous 

 shades. They are polygamous, and live together in families. 

 They readily seek shelter in the trees, both for roosting and in 

 order to conceal themselves from their enemies. 



At the first breath of spring the male birds make the woods 

 re-echo with the loud notes with which they summon the females 

 to come to them. For an hour every morning and evening, for 

 over a month, this practice is continued. 



The females retire into the thick brushwood to build their nests 

 and lay their eggs : here they devote themselves to incubation, 

 and afterwards to rearing their offspring — cares which devolve 

 upon them exclusively. They deposit from eight to sixteen eggs 

 on a bed of grasses and leaves roughly interwoven. The young 

 birds run about as soon as hatched, and remain for several months 



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